Communications

Presidential Address, Thursday 21 September

Presidential Address, Thursday 21 September

24 August 2017 at 12:24

President Dr Kieran Feighan, BE PhD CEng FIEI,Chartered Engineer

All members are welcome and encouraged to attend this keynote event in the Engineers Ireland calendar when our President, Dr Kieran Feighan, will give his Presidential Address. The Address, entitled “Fusing Transport, Energy and Technology – Engineering an Irish Revolution” will take place on Thursday evening 21 September.

Attendees are asked to arrive at our offices here at 22 Clyde Road in Ballsbridge from 6:00 pm with the Address commencing at 6.30 pm. It will be followed by light snacks and refreshments in our Café Clyde.

In his address, Dr Feighan will describe how a new form of energy, coupled with innovative transport technology, was the foundation upon which many historical empires were successively constructed. Similarly, the United States’ rise to become the dominating world economy was founded on blending new energy sources with innovative technology in the transport sector.

The world has again reached a point where the global economy will be changed utterly as a new source of energy (renewables) is coupled with transforming technology (the Internet of Things, Big Data, Sensor Technology) and transport solutions (Autonomous vehicles, Electricity storage, Hydrogen fuel cells, Mobility as a Service) to produce winners and losers at enterprise and national scales.

Ireland has many renewable energy sources, high skills involvement in ITS, strong research capability through universities and IoTs, and engineering-led transport and energy semi-state companies. Advocacy for a clear and unrelenting focus on Ireland as a massive testing ground for these new technologies is proposed.

Dr. Kieran Feighan is a Chartered Engineer, a Fellow of Engineers Ireland by Presidential Invitation, and a Member of the American Society of Civil Engineers. Kieran holds a BE (First Hons) degree in Civil Engineering from University College Galway, and was awarded the NUI Bursary in Civil Engineering in 1983. He used the Bursary to continue his education in the United States, and was awarded a Master’s degree in Civil Engineering (1985) and a PhD in Transportation Engineering (1988) from Purdue University, Indiana. Prior to returning to Ireland, he worked with the US Army Corps of Engineers Research Laboratory and with a specialised pavement engineering firm in Champaign, Illinois. Kieran also holds a postgraduate diploma in Construction Law and Contract Administration from Trinity College Dublin. Kieran’s complete biography is here.

Member Login

Members can login for access to exclusive content, event booking, shop discounts and more...